As a huge animal lover, shooting a bunch of dogs and cats for Purina is my kind of gig. Over the years, I’ve photographed all kinds of breeds in collections I like to call “dogtraits” and “catraits.” According to Instagram, I’m not the sole hastagger, but I’m still taking credit for its invention.

Over the course of two days in November 2015, Director James Kapner and I gathered heaps of b-roll of owners interacting with their pets. Director/DP, Jared Seltzer shot the location interviews at the Purina headquarters so my first shot arrives after the 0:10 second mark with our friend, Jessie Rosen and her lovely puppy, Louie.

Personal connections were key to populating most of the video since we had to primarily shoot in their actual homes (imagine bringing a cat to location). After lensing both Jared and James’s fathers on the first day, I suggested shooting my family as well. Thankfully my parents and their rescue dog, Lexi made the cut! Sadly my aunt wasn’t as fortunate. Isn’t show business the worst?

We captured almost all of the 4K footage at 60FPS in SLog3.cine with my Sony FS7. There are a couple of GoPro Hero 4 Black shots that also made the cut.

Next time you’re on an American Airlines flight, please pay attention to your in-flight entertainment as you may see this piece on your seatback!

If you could have one of the pets in the video, which one would you choose? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below!